NFL reaffirms equal access rules for media

All 32 NFL teams will undergo a new training program that focuses on proper conduct in the workplace, the league announced Friday. The ruling is in response to an incident last week in the New York Jets locker room in which a female reporter was allegedly subject to verbal harassment by players.

The NFL investigated and determined that there was “unprofessional conduct” around TV Azteca reporter Ines Sainz, who was credentialed by the team to interview quarterback Mark Sanchez. The league also determined that the Jets organization “acted promptly to correct the situation,” according to a statement from the NFL.

Jets owner Woody Johnson will underwrite the new training program for all 32 teams, which will also be given to rookies in 2011.

In its ruling Friday, the NFL also reaffirmed the equal access laws for all media covering the league.

“There is no debate about the longstanding equal access rule of our media policy,” Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “The issue for us, like all organizations, is proper conduct in the workplace, whether it is dealing with the media, co-workers, fans, or others. It is our responsibility to provide a professional setting for members of the news media and other business associates that work with our teams and the league.”

The NFL’s ruling Friday helped return the discussion to the original issue: Player behavior in the open-locker room setting. In the six days since the Ines Sainz situation happened in New Jersey, the debate shifted from the Jets, to Sainz, to female reporters, to all reporters in general in the locker room. And to me, that’s extremely sad.

This is not an issue about sex or nudity or the sanctity of the NFL locker room. All of the professional sports leagues in this country have long-established media plans that include time in the locker room. These rules were established by the leagues themselves and thousands of reporters (male and female) and athletes conduct their daily business in accordance with these rules on a daily basis.

What this incident — and the ensuing debate — revealed was a major misconception about what actually happens inside the locker room. Let me do my best to debunk these myths, as best I can from my experience covering the Broncos:

— Players shower and use the bathroom in private. This is a separate, private area of the locker room where reporters (male and female alike) are not allowed and never enter.

— There is very minimal nudity. There seems to be this perception that players hang out completely naked at all times in the locker room (thanks, Clinton Portis). This could not be further from the truth. When players come and go from the shower, they wear towels. If players are dressing when reporters are around, they nearly always do so quickly and discretely. Do you think they enjoy being naked in front of strangers, most of them men, many of them holding video cameras? No way.

— It is easy to avoid uncomfortable situations, both for the players and for the reporters. My own personal rule is not to interview players until they are dressed. In my three years on the beat, I have never missed out on an interview because I have waited for a player to get fully covered. In return, there are numerous players, including several prominent Broncos, who ask reporters to wait until they have finished dressing, and the media has always respected their privacy.

— For beat writers, the open locker room setting is extremely important to the day-to-day part of our jobs. I have seen plenty of comments like, “Close the locker room to everyone!” and the problem with that logic, especially when it comes from fans, is that the fans — the readers, listeners and viewers — are the ones that would ultimately suffer. The three hours a week reporters spend in the locker room is the time we truly develop stories and sources that are central the coverage the fans expect and demand. It is also the system that the NFL works best for them and for each team’s media relations staff. Remember, these are the rules established by the league itself, rules that have been in place for decades.

Now, can we return to our regularly scheduled football reporting? If I remember correctly, it seems the Broncos have a pretty important game coming up.

[1] full text of the NFL’s release and letter to Johnson on NFL.com: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d81a9cede/article/nfl-reaffirms-commitment-to-equal-access-for-all-media?module=HP_headlines

[2] New York Newsday’s Bob Glauber — doesn’t think the league went far enough: http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/glauber-s-nfl-hot-reads-1.811959/goodell-missed-the-mark-on-jets-locker-room-shenanigans-1.2299372?print=true